HF 039 Sewer Group
10:29:18 PM Josh: Josh added Quill, Rune to this conversation 10:29:18 PM Josh: Josh has enabled invitations, you can now invite people to this chat 10:29:58 PM Quill: Quill heads for the most romantic urchin-adjacent sewer entrance! 10:30:23 PM Rune: ... this is part of why I wanted them to have the fruit. They might hear things. 10:30:34 PM Rune: People don't really notice urchins. 10:30:50 PM Quill: Quill nods. "Yeah, it was good thinking." 10:31:25 PM Josh: Approaching the entrance, you find two small urchins hanging out by the sewer. As you approach, you notice them start to approach you in a mildly threatening way. 10:31:59 PM Rune: Rune waves at one. 10:32:40 PM Josh: A girl pokes her head out. It's Lua. 10:32:51 PM Rune: Hullo, Lua! 10:32:55 PM Josh: Lua: "S'ok. They're nice. They give us fruit." 10:32:59 PM Josh: Lua: "Hi!" 10:33:14 PM Quill: Quill waves. 10:33:42 PM Rune: We were hoping to see Dodger, do you think that would be all right? 10:34:00 PM Josh: Lua: "Oh, yeah, sure. Come on in." 10:34:18 PM Rune: Rune does! 10:34:28 PM Rune: How is he doing since... well, you know. 10:34:33 PM Quill: Quill does as well. 10:34:39 PM Josh: The smell is just as horrid as always. 10:34:55 PM Josh: Lua: "He's...he's ok...I think. He doesn't talk so much anymore." 10:35:01 PM Josh: Lua: "When's Max coming back?" 10:35:42 PM Quill: We're working on it. YOu know how stubborn and thickheaded he can be. 10:36:29 PM Rune: He picked some people's pockets so now he's being punished for it, too. But nothing too bad, just extra cleaning and boring things. Maybe Tim will teach him some magic. 10:37:18 PM Josh: Lua: "Why's he being punished? We pick pockets all the time." 10:37:24 PM Josh: Lua: "He's real good at it." 10:37:39 PM Quill: He got caught. 10:38:02 PM Josh: Lua: "Oh...well, we'll go break him out!" 10:38:07 PM Rune: He's not in jail. 10:38:12 PM Rune: He's just cleaning and things. 10:38:25 PM Rune: Also, you shouldn't pick pockets, really. It's illegal and also not very nice. 10:38:29 PM Quill: He's fine, just grumpy. 10:39:24 PM Josh: Lua: "Oh...ok." 10:39:49 PM Josh: She leads you down a hallway and into a chamber. There are a couple bookshelves set up, a lantern, and an armchair. 10:41:06 PM Rune: He's not losing people, is he? 10:41:22 PM Josh: Dodger: "Who's losing people?" 10:41:29 PM Rune: You're not, I hope? Are you? 10:41:31 PM Josh: Dodger pokes his head around the armchair. 10:42:14 PM Josh: Dodger: "A couple. Not lost, though. Just leaving." 10:42:36 PM Rune: Well, I'm glad it's not lost lost. 10:44:33 PM Quill: So what's the word on the streets, Dodger? After Zharn Dynne got splatted. 10:46:29 PM Rune: Rune opens her mouth to say something and then thinks better of it... for now. 10:46:48 PM Josh: Dodger: "That's pretty much the word there." 10:47:12 PM Josh: Dodger: "I'm having my folks keep clear of it. Nothing but trouble for me and mine." 10:47:27 PM Josh: He stands up to face you. 10:48:03 PM Rune: That's probably for the best. If you do happen to hear anything let us know if you think of it. 10:49:17 PM Josh: Dodger: "I'll be keep my ears out for you, lass. I will say that this sent more ripples out into the not so up and tidy folks round here. More than I'd think. Word is DB has his men poking around there." 10:50:17 PM Rune: Rune nods. 10:50:27 PM Rune: That means he's probably trying to work out who did it and turn it to his advantage. 10:51:12 PM Rune: And Zharn might have been involved in shady dealings himself. I don't think he had a lot of scruples about that sort of thing if it gave his people an advantage. 10:52:18 PM Josh: Dodger nods. "Aye, sounds like. Sorry I can't be of more help to ya. This is beyond where I usually like to go." 10:52:40 PM Rune: Well, that's good, really. That kind of thing isn't safe. 10:52:42 PM Quill: It's probably wise that you stay away from it. It's a huge mess. 10:52:47 PM Rune: Rune nods. 10:53:03 PM Rune: Have you heard anything else? We met the vampires again. 10:53:58 PM Josh: Dodger: "That's another group I try to stay below the notice of." 10:54:04 PM Josh: Dodger: "They say anything?" 10:54:17 PM Rune: Er, well... 10:54:22 PM Rune: Rune looks to Quill to explain that one. 10:56:14 PM Quill: Not really. Just keep clear of them, you should be fine. They believe you guys are under my protection, so.... 10:56:43 PM Josh: Dodger: "Is that good or bad?" 10:56:56 PM Quill: It should keep you safe from them for now. 10:57:09 PM Rune: It's probably good? 10:57:29 PM Quill: If there's any issues, just tell them that you're under the protection of Quillyn Rae. 10:57:58 PM Josh: Dodger nods. "Got it. If anything else happens...I'll let you know." 10:58:07 PM Rune: All right. 10:58:58 PM Rune: I haven't started talking Max around yet; I thought we'd better give him a bit of time. And he's also being punished for pickpocketing--nothing too bad, but I made him feel guilty about it. And for Sleeping poor Gerald. 11:00:14 PM Josh: Dodger: "...who's Gerald and...wait, he slept with him? He's, like, 11. That's horrible! Don't punish him for--" 11:00:42 PM Rune: No. 11:00:50 PM Rune: Gerald is our butler. 11:01:08 PM Rune: And Max slept him. He cast the sleeping spell on him. You know, sleep magic. It makes you fall asleep. 11:01:26 PM Josh: Dodger: "Oh, that's different." 11:01:49 PM Rune: ... it's not a very nice thing to do to somebody who makes your dinner for you every day. ... or very smart. I mean, if he got really angry he could spit in it or something. 11:02:01 PM Rune: I don't think Gerald would. But he could. 11:04:13 PM Josh: Dodger: "...ok. I...yeah..." 11:04:51 PM Rune: Mostly we came down here to ask you if you'd heard anything and warn you about the vampires, but... I also wanted to know if you were okay. 11:05:08 PM Quill: Yeah, Lua said it's been kind of rough for you. 11:05:53 PM Josh: Dodger: "I'll be fine. I've had me folks come and go before. ...just...they don't often...it's nothing. I'm fine." 11:06:25 PM Rune: They don't often what? And it's not fine. It shouldn't be fine anyway. It shouldn't be! 11:07:00 PM Josh: Dodger waves Lua off. 11:07:07 PM Josh: Lua leaves, but seems concerned. 11:07:28 PM Rune: ... sometimes it makes me so angry. And other times I just get sad about it, I guess. It's almost more like hopeless than sad though. 11:08:02 PM Josh: Dodger: "What you saw, in the fight. That's the real me. What I actually look like. That's what I don't let any of them see, for precisely this reason." 11:08:57 PM Rune: It bothers people, how we look, somehow. Why do they care, anyway? What difference does it even make? 11:09:56 PM Josh: Dodger: "Yeah, but they do. And somehow it does matter. And it don't matter that it ain't our fault, or how it happened. It ain't fair, but it is. And...yeah." 11:11:41 PM Rune: ... I wasn't ever supposed to go to the village alone, ever. My grandmother wouldn't let me. But one time I went anyway, and they threw a rock at me, and grabbed me by the horns and wouldn't let go, and rubbed mud all over me and called me Goat Girl. 11:13:26 PM Josh: Dodger: "...I think I was a fox once. Also a boy. I...I remember both, somehow." 11:14:43 PM Quill: Quill makes a face. ((sorry, internet blinked out there.)) 11:14:50 PM Rune: That must be awfully confusing sometimes. Was it nice, being a fox? I saw one in our garden once; I think it wanted our chickens, but it was too smart to try and ate some of the cats' food instead. It looked small and wet and cold that day. 11:16:51 PM Josh: Dodger: "It was nice." 11:17:19 PM Rune: At least we have tails. I always feel sorry for people without tails. How do they balance properly? 11:17:29 PM Quill: I manage okay. 11:17:31 PM Rune: Rune addresses this to Quill, of course. 11:17:51 PM Rune: I suppose you can't know you're missing one. 11:18:49 PM Rune: ... did the boy's parents find out what happened to him, if he had any? 11:18:50 PM Quill: But, I mean, everyone's weird. I don't know how you people manage to do things in bright sunlight, either. 11:19:46 PM Josh: Dodger: "I don't think so. They were long dead by the time I got back here." 11:20:28 PM Rune: That's sad. Parents normally do nice things like not throwing you down wells and giving you cookies and tea. 11:21:21 PM Josh: Dodger: "...I don't want to talk about this anymore. Thank you for coming." 11:21:36 PM Rune: All right. 11:21:47 PM Josh: Dodger hugs you. 11:21:50 PM Rune: Rune hugs him back. 11:24:25 PM Rune: I like you. And Max does too, he's just forgotten. He'll remember eventually. I ended up tutoring one of the boys who rubbed mud in my hair. Eventually. 11:25:20 PM Josh: Dodger sniffs and lets go. "Right. Yeah, ok. ...and, for the others...this didn't happen." 11:25:47 PM Rune: 'course not, we just came to ask about the murder. And warn you about vampires. 11:26:08 PM Josh: Dodger: "Right. Yeah." 11:26:42 PM Rune: Rune nods encouragingly and heads out. 11:27:05 PM Quill: Quill waves and follows! 11:27:40 PM Rune: ... of course that was after I set him on fire a little bit. 11:27:50 PM Quill: .... good. 11:28:02 PM Rune: ... to be fair, I hadn't thought it would work.